Now that I've finally managed to get it apart, it seems as though the switch assembly in my 3 D-Cell maglite might be capable of supporting a laser diode. I'd have to plug something into the bulb holder, to shore up the wasted space, but I believe connecting the diode's leads directly to the switch and case can work.

Trouble is...though I've tested the batteries AND the diode, I can't seem to get any voltage out of the bulb holder. My voltmeter reads positive current from the two contacts, yet when I connect a 10mW laser diode I get nothing. I have another battery pack, from a smaller light, which powers the diode with three AAA batteries, so I'm certain the power source isn't the issue.

I've also managed to break the LED bulb during this process. Nuts.

Question is...what are the possible causes of this phenomenon? I need to be able to narrow my search down to a few areas, but deductive reasoning has failed me this time.

I could get another cheapie to try again, but would rather not waste money.

Anyone try this yet?

EDIT: All right, I'll chalk this one up to a beginner's mistake. I'm fairly certain that the set screw wasn't fully in place. You know, the one that makes all the difference between "you have a path to negative" and "you don't have a path to negative"? That one.

You connected a laser diode straight to the contacts? The diode is probably dead... this is why we make driver circuits for our diodes. You cannot simply connect the diode straight to a power source, it will burn out instantly

The diode is a complete laser module, with integrated power supply, which is rated for the load (if I remember correctly).

So...no. I didn't.

Besides, if that were the case, it wouldn't light up (as stated above) when I connect it to another power source. It does.

The problem here is that I just can't quite get the setup to work right when I try wiring the diode to the actual host. I'm sure I'm missing something stupid, which is why I asked. Learn from those who know, no?

I will eventually get this thing running, this is a two cell iirc and I want to run three sub-c NiMh . . . Just need to machine the lens housing for the fan to fit and machine the heatsink to fit . . .

I suppose D-size maglites wouldn't make bad hosts at all, even with passive cooling. You just need some heatsink/coupler that fits an aixiz module inside, and fits the maglite body outside.

Using a 6D maglite and 1 watt 445 diode the whole thing could be a very cool project to build and use. The body size is large enough to allow continous operation, and the batteries could provide current for many hours - so it would be a true laser for permanent operation.